Samajwadi party national president Akhilesh Yadav released the manifesto of the party here on Sunday. Taking a leaf out of the Dravidian politics of Tamilnadu , the manifesto sought to placate every sections of society including direct gift of pressure cookers to housewives and monthly pension of Rs 1,000 to one crore people.
The event was marked by the absence of party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, clearly indicating that all is still not well in the first family of the party and the feud is still raging. The release of the manifesto was delayed due to absence of Mulayam Singh. Senior SP leader Azam Khan rushed to the residence of Mulayam Singh to persuade him to attend the event but SP patriarch refused to relent. Shivpal Yadav, the estranged uncle of the chief minister was also conspicuous by his absence. This was for the first time since 1993 UP assembly elections that the SP election manifesto was released in the absence of Mulayam Singh Yadav, who had founded the party in October 1992.
Addressing the party men ahead of the release of the manifest at the state office of the party Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav said `` with the blessings of Netaji (Mulayam Singh) I became the youngest chief minister of UP and with the cooperation of the ministers of the government the SP government was able to translate ambitious development projects on the ground’’. The manifesto Akhilesh released featured a photograph of him and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav.
“We are keeping the manifesto before the people with a firm resolve to from the next government in UP. What we had promised in last assembly elections in 2012 has been fulfilled and we will continue to work for the uplift of the common people’’, said Akhilesh Yadav.
Targeting the BJP led Central government, SP president said `` the people of UP know as to who is their saviour and those who gave the slogan of `Acche din’, have failed to deliver, Union budget is in the offing and they may make some announcements for the state as UP is poll bound’’. He added `` SP has delivered to the people on all the promises it made in 2012’’.
“We did what we promise. We promised laptops, we gave people laptops. It’s been three years but people are still looking for ‘Ache Din’ and development. Where are the ‘achche din’ that were promised three years ago. Instead people have been given brooms in their hands in the name of Swachh Bharat and are being given lessons in Yoga, but nobody can see the Achche Din that were promised,”
Asking the BJP to define its concept of ‘acche din.’ SP president said `` the BJP needs to define ‘achche din’ so that people can themselves decipher what the promise has given them. We have fulfilled all the promises that we made in our 2012 manifesto and completed projects which were not even mentioned in the manifesto’’. Akhilesh listed the ambitious lucknow-Agra Expressway project and the metro rail project in lucknow.
Referring to the smart phone scheme of the state government Akhilesh Yadav, ``so far 1.4 crore people have registered themselves for availing the benefit of the free Smartphone, if only these people vote for our party then Samajwadi party will form the government by winning 300 seats’’.
Akhilesh also emphasised the need for improving the quality of the basic education. He said though the government did a lot for this sector by appointing over a lakh teachers and giving many new facilities for the primary schools lot needs to be done. He acknowledged that the quality of education was seriously wanting in the state.
Citing an example of the ignorance among the students he said ``once I visited a primary school on the outskirts of lucknow and some students thought I was Rahul Gandhi,”.
Training guns at his bitter rival Akhilesh Yadav said `` if at all ``Patthar party’ ( BSP) comes to power, its government will install bigger elephants and if this party join the competition with the Maharashtra government , which is building tallest statue of Shivajee , then it may construct yet another big statue of the elephant’’.
Akhilesh Yadav particularly appealed to the youth to give one more chance to the Samajwadi Party so that the state could move on the path of balanced and accelerated development.